JP2010139217A - Heating method and heating equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To carry out improvement such that further efficient heating treatment can be carried out with respect to various types of heat reception objects on the assumption of adopting microwave heating. <P>SOLUTION: The heating equipment 10 includes an inner container 20 housing a heat reception object G to carry out heat treatment to the heat reception object G, an outer container 30 housing the inner container 20, a superheated steam generator 50 supplying superheated steam into the inner container 20, and a microwave oscillation device 40 irradiating microwaves into the outer containers 30, 30'. Particularly, in the inner container 20, a container body covering a heating space of an interior is formed of a material allowing transmission of microwaves. Ceramics is adopted as the material allowing transmission of microwaves. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a heating method and a heating apparatus using microwaves and superheated steam, for example, for effectively heating foods, wood, and further heated objects such as ceramics and rubber.

  Conventionally, as an apparatus for performing heat treatment on an object to be heated by irradiation with microwaves, for example, a microwave heating furnace described in Patent Document 1 can be given. The heating object in this heating furnace is a ceramic honeycomb, and the heat treatment is firing. Patent Document 1 describes that the use of microwaves does not cause uneven burning, and it is difficult for cracks and deformation to occur.

  Conventionally, as an apparatus that heats an object to be heated using superheated steam, for example, a superheated steam drying apparatus described in Patent Document 2 can be cited. The object to be heated in this apparatus is wood, and the heat treatment is drying. Patent Document 2 describes that an efficient drying process is realized by using superheated steam.

  By the way, the heating method of microwave heating is a so-called internal heating method in which the object to be heated is heated from the inside, whereas the heating method using superheated steam is an external heating method in which the object to be heated is heated from the outside. is there. Each heating method has its own advantages and disadvantages, and is generally used properly depending on the type of object to be heated and the purpose of heating.

On the other hand, Patent Document 3 describes a heating device (ceramic firing furnace) that uses both internal heating using microwaves and external heating using superheated steam. In this ceramic firing furnace, a molded product obtained by molding a ceramic raw material such as clay is dried and fired, and finally subjected to a cooling treatment to obtain a ceramic product.
JP 2004-51469 A JP 2007-309614 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-230796

  By the way, in the ceramic firing furnace described in Patent Document 3, when a cooling process is performed on a molded product that has become high temperature during the firing process, the molded product is overheated in order to prevent the molded product from being rapidly cooled and causing cracks. Steam is used. That is, the preheated superheated steam is not used for the heat treatment that should be intended.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the above situations, Comprising: The heat processing with respect to the to-be-heated material which uses internal heating using a microwave and external heating using superheated steam more efficiently is performed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a heating method and a heating apparatus improved as much as possible.

  The invention according to claim 1 (heating method) supplies superheated steam into a first heating container loaded with an object to be heated and irradiates microwaves into a second heating container that houses the first heating container. Thus, the object to be heated is heat-treated by a combination of external heating with the superheated steam and microwave heating with microwaves transmitted through the wall of the first heating vessel.

  Invention of Claim 2 (heating apparatus) is a heating apparatus applied to the heating method of Claim 1, Comprising: The 1st heating container which accommodates the said to-be-heated object in order to heat-process to-be-heated object, A second heating container that accommodates the first heating container, a superheated steam generator that supplies superheated steam to the first heating container, and a microwave oscillation device that irradiates the second heating container with microwaves The first heating container is characterized in that the container body covering the internal heating space is formed of a material that can transmit microwaves.

  According to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the object to be heated loaded in the first heating container is irradiated with the superheated steam directly supplied to the first heating container and the second heating container, The heat treatment is performed by external heating and internal heating both by the microwave irradiated through the wall of the heating container and irradiated into the first heating container. Therefore, the object to be heated is heated from inside and outside, and a rapid and uniform heat treatment is realized.

  Since the superheated steam is supplied to the first heating container having a smaller capacity than the second heating container, the object to be heated is directly loaded into the second heating container having a large capacity without adopting the first heating container. Compared to the above, it becomes possible to perform the intended heat treatment with a small amount of superheated steam on the object to be heated, which contributes to a reduction in energy costs.

  In addition, the microwave has a property that it cannot be sufficiently diffused indoors unless the distance between opposing wall surfaces in the room to which the microwave is irradiated is set to be not less than twice the wavelength of the microwave. Therefore, when microwaves are directly irradiated into the narrow first heating container, there is a risk that a uniform heat treatment cannot be performed on an object to be heated. Since the microwave is irradiated to the second heating container that can be set to, uniform microwave heating is performed on the object to be heated in the first heating container by irregular reflection in the second heating container.

  In this way, by supplying superheated steam into a small-capacity first heating container loaded with an object to be heated, and irradiating microwaves into the second heating container in which the first heating container is accommodated, More effective heat treatment is performed on the object to be heated by effectively using the characteristics of superheated steam and microwave.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the material capable of transmitting microwaves is ceramics.

  According to this configuration, ceramics can transmit microwaves, and the ceramics themselves are internally heated by microwave irradiation, so that they are suitable as a material for the first heating container in which an object to be heated is loaded. It is.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second or third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a conveying unit that sequentially conveys the article to be heated in series, and the conveying unit includes both the first and second heating containers. It is arrange | positioned so that it may penetrate.

  According to such a configuration, the heat treatment is continuously performed on each object to be heated by causing both the first and second heating containers to be submerged while sequentially conveying a large number of objects to be heated in series by the conveying means. Therefore, the efficiency of the heat treatment for many objects to be heated is realized.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the invention, the installation position of the first heating container in the transport direction of the transport means is set according to the type of the object to be heated and the heating purpose. It is a feature.

  According to such a configuration, regarding the object to be heated, is it appropriate to first apply external heating and then internal heating, or is it appropriate to apply internal heating and then external heating, etc. Since the position of the first heating container in the second heating container is set according to the type and purpose of the object to be heated (specifically, for example, when performing internal heating after applying external heating, The first heating container is disposed on the upstream end side of the second heating container. When external heating is performed after internal heating is performed, the first heating container is disposed on the downstream end side of the second heating container. Therefore, the object to be heated is heat-treated in a suitable state according to the type and purpose.

  According to the heating method and the heating device according to the present invention, the superheated steam is supplied into the small-capacity first heating container loaded with the article to be heated, and the second heating container in which the first heating container is accommodated. Because microwaves are irradiated inside, it is possible to effectively use the characteristics of superheated steam and microwave for the heat treatment of the object to be heated. As a result, the object to be heated is more effective than before. Heat treatment can be performed.

  FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a heating apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of the heating apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 and 2, the X direction is referred to as the left-right direction, and the Y direction is referred to as the front-rear direction. Particularly, -X is referred to as the left, + X is referred to as the right, -Y is referred to as the front, and + Y is referred to as the rear.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the heating device 10 according to the first embodiment performs heat treatment on the article to be heated G by batch processing. Examples of the heat treatment include a drying treatment for drying a material containing moisture, a baking treatment for producing a curable compound by applying heat to a predetermined raw material prepared, a cooking treatment for applying a heat to complete cooking, and heat. In addition, a bactericidal treatment that kills bacteria or a combination thereof can be used. In addition, these objects to be heated include wood that is the object of drying treatment, food that is completed by the application of heat, wood that is heated to be modified, and ceramic intermediate products ( For example, a molded product made of clay before baking) or an intermediate product of rubber (rubber product before vulcanization).

  The heating apparatus 10 of the first embodiment used for such an application includes an inner container (first heating container) 20 in which an object to be heated G is loaded, and an outer container (second heating) that accommodates the inner container 20. Container) 30, a microwave oscillation device 40 that irradiates microwaves into the outer container 30, and a superheated steam generator 50 that supplies superheated steam into the inner container 20. .

  The microwave irradiated into the outer container 30 is preferably used as long as the frequency is in the range of 300 MHz to 30 GHz, but usually the one having a frequency of 2450 MHz or 915 MHz is used.

  The superheated steam supplied into the inner container is one obtained by further heating 100 ° C. saturated steam at normal pressure to 100 ° C. or higher. In this embodiment, superheated steam at 200 ° C. to 300 ° C. at normal pressure is used.

  The inner container 20 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and an inner container body 21 through which a heated object G is taken in and out of the inner container body 21 through a front opening 211 provided on the front side, and a front surface of the inner container body 21 An openable / closable inner container side door 22 for closing the opening 211 and a steam vent pipe 23 attached to the upper left surface of the inner container main body 21 are provided.

  The inner container body 21 is made of ceramics that transmit microwaves, generate heat by the microwaves themselves, and have heat resistance that can withstand high temperatures of 200 ° C to 300 ° C. As such ceramics, oxide ceramics such as aluminum titanate, quartz glass, alumina or zirconia are preferably used. Since the inner container body 21 can contribute to the increase in the atmospheric temperature in the inner container body 21 due to the heat generated when the microwave is irradiated, it can contribute to the increase in the heating efficiency of the external heating.

  The inner container body 21 is installed on a four-legged pedestal 24 arranged on the bottom plate of the outer container 30, so that the installation position is set so as to be positioned at a substantially central portion in the outer container 30. . The pedestal 24 is formed by laying beam members 242 (see FIG. 2) between the tops of four leg portions 241 disposed in a rectangular shape in plan view. Therefore, in a state where the inner container body 21 is supported by the pedestal 24, the lower surface thereof is exposed in the outer container 30, whereby microwaves can be transmitted from the bottom plate of the inner container body 21 into the inner container body 21. It is like that.

  The inner container side door 22 is formed of the same ceramic as the inner container body 21. By forming the inner container side door 22 with ceramics, microwaves can enter the inside from the front surface of the inner container body 21 in a state where the inner container side door 22 is closed.

  The steam vent pipe 23 is for discharging excess superheated steam in the inner container 20 to the outside of the heating device 10. The steam vent pipe 23 is provided so as to penetrate the left wall portion of the inner container body 21 and the left wall portion of the outer container 30, so that excessive superheated steam in the inner container 20 passes through the outer container 30. It is discharged directly without going through. By doing so, the microwave irradiated from the microwave oscillation device 40 into the outer container 30 does not heat the vapor in the outer container 30, and the energy of the microwave to be heated in the inner container 20 Effectively used for heating.

  The outer container 30 is provided in an openable and closable manner in an outer container body 31 having a rectangular parallelepiped box shape made of a metal material so as to reflect microwaves, and an insertion / removal opening 311 on the front surface of the outer container body 31. The outer container side door 32 made of the same metal material as the outer container body 31 is provided.

  The outer container main body 31 has a distance between opposing wall surfaces in the outer container main body 31 (inner dimensions between the front and rear facing wall surfaces, inner dimensions between the left and right opposing wall surfaces, and inner dimensions between the upper and lower opposing wall surfaces). Each dimension is set to be twice or more the wavelength of the microwave. This is because if the distance between the opposing wall surfaces of the space irradiated with the microwave is not more than twice the wavelength of the microwaves, the microwaves cannot be randomly reflected on the wall surface, resulting in the result This is because the microwave is not evenly applied to the object to be heated G, and it becomes difficult to uniformly heat the object to be heated G.

  Incidentally, in this embodiment, since the microwave of 2450 MHz is adopted, the outer container 30 is designed so that the distance between the opposing wall surfaces of the outer container 30 is approximately 250 mm or more in consideration of the wavelength (approximately 122 mm). The dimensions are set.

  The microwave oscillating device 40 includes an oscillating device main body 41 in which a device for generating microwaves such as a magnetron is housed, and a waveguide 42 interposed between the oscillating device main body 41 and the outer container 30. And. The distal end side of the waveguide 42 penetrates through the top plate of the outer container main body 31 and enters the outer container main body 31, and the opening of the front end surface faces the top plate of the inner container 20.

  According to the microwave oscillating device 40, the microwave oscillated in the oscillating device main body 41 is guided into the outer container main body 31 through the waveguide 42, and the ceramic wall portion of the inner container main body 21. Is transmitted toward the object to be heated G in the inner container body 21. As a result, the object G to be heated in the inner container body 21 is subjected to an internal heating process using microwaves.

  The superheated steam generator 50 includes a generator main body 51 in which a boiler for further heating the steam obtained by heating water therein to generate superheated steam, and the generator main body 51 A steam supply pipe 52 interposed between the container 30 and the container 30 is provided. The steam supply pipe 52 penetrates the top plate of the outer container body 31 of the outer container 30 through the top plate of the outer container 30 and enters the inside of the outer container body 31. An opening faces the inner container 20.

  In the present embodiment, the superheated steam is heated to 100 ° C. to 400 ° C., preferably 200 ° C. to 300 ° C., more preferably about 250 ° C. at room temperature.

  According to the superheated steam generator 50, the superheated steam generated in the generator body 51 is guided into the inner container body 21 through the steam supply pipe 52 and is heated in the inner container body 21. Contact directly. As a result, the object G to be heated in the inner container body 21 is subjected to an external heating process using superheated steam.

  And in this embodiment, after the to-be-heated object G is loaded in the inner container main body 21, the microwave oscillation apparatus 40 and the superheated steam generator 50 are driven simultaneously, thereby, the high frequency and overheating with respect to the to-be-heated object G are carried out. At the same time as the steam is started, the microwave oscillator 40 and the superheated steam generator 50 are stopped at the same time when the preset heat treatment is finished after a predetermined time has passed.

  When the object to be heated G is heated by the heating device 10 according to the first embodiment, first, the outer container side door 32 is opened, the inner container side door 22 is subsequently opened, and the inside of the inner container main body 21 is external. Exposed to. In this state, a predetermined number of heated objects G set in advance are loaded into the inner container body 21 through the front opening 211 of the inner container 20.

  Thereafter, the inner container side door 22 and the outer container side door 32 are sequentially closed, and then the microwave oscillation device 40 and the superheated steam generation device 50 are simultaneously driven. With these driving operations, the microwave from the oscillation device main body 41 is irradiated into the outer container main body 31 through the waveguide 42, and the superheated steam generated in the generation device main body 51 is generated in the steam supply pipe 52. It is introduced directly into the inner container body 21 without passing through the outer container body 31.

  And the microwave irradiated in the outer container main body 31 permeate | transmits the front and rear, right and left of the ceramic inner container main body 21 and six upper and lower surfaces of the inner container main body 21 in a state without directivity while being irregularly reflected on the metal wall surface. Invade into the main body 21. As a result, the object to be heated G loaded in the inner container body 21 receives microwaves uniformly irradiated from the six surfaces in the inner container body 21, and is subjected to uniform internal heating by the microwaves.

  At this time, since the ceramic inner container body 21 itself generates heat upon irradiation with microwaves, the inside of the inner container body 21 is also heated by this, so that the inside of the inner container body 21 becomes a higher temperature environment. A better heat treatment for the heated object G is realized.

  On the other hand, the superheated steam introduced from the generator main body 51 into the inner container main body 21 via the steam supply pipe 52 contacts the surface of the heated object G loaded in the inner container main body 21 evenly. The object to be heated G is subjected to uniform external heat treatment. Since the superheated steam is set to 100 ° C. or higher, which is the boiling point of water at normal pressure, not only can the external heating of the heated object G be performed quickly, but the heated object G must be grilled. In the case of the finished food, it becomes possible to burn the surface of the food.

  In the present embodiment, excess superheated steam in the inner container body 21 is discharged to the outside of the outer container body 31 through the steam vent pipe 23. It is not limited to discharging outside 31, and it may be discharged into the outer container body 31.

  Further, since the external heating is performed with the heated steam on the object G to be heated in the small-capacity inner container body 21, the necessary and sufficient external heating treatment is performed on the object G to be heated while reducing the amount of superheated steam as much as possible. Can contribute to the reduction of energy costs.

  Hereinafter, based on FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the heating apparatus 10 'according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a heating device 10 ′ according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of the heating device 10 ′ shown in FIG. In addition, the direction display by X and Y in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 is the same as the case of FIG. 1 (-X: leftward, + X: rightward, -Y: forward, + Y: backward).

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the heating device 10 ′ according to the second embodiment sequentially heats a large number of objects to be heated G in a continuous process. The heating device 10 ′ is long in the conveyance direction (left-right direction) of the heated object G that accommodates the inner container (first heated container) 20 ′ in which the heated object G is loaded and the inner container 20 ′. An outer container (second heating container) 30 ', a microwave oscillator 40 for irradiating microwaves into the outer container 30', and a superheated steam generator 50 for supplying superheated steam into the inner container 20 '. The basic structure includes a transport device (transport means) 60 that sequentially feeds a plurality of objects to be heated G into the inner container 20 ′ and the outer container 30 ′.

  The inner container 20 ′ is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape with ceramics as in the first embodiment, and is installed on the pedestal 24 at the center position of the outer container 30 ′. The inner container 20 ′ is provided with an inlet opening 25 for receiving the heated object G conveyed by the conveying device 60 on the right side which is upstream, and the heated object G on the left side which is downstream. Is provided with an outlet opening 26.

  The outer container 30 'is made of a metal material as in the first embodiment. The outer container 30 'has an outer container body 31' that is in the shape of a long rectangular parallelepiped inside the inner container 20 'and an open end wall (right end wall) on the upstream side of the outer container body 31'. A pair of left and right trap zones 33 that extend outward from the inlet opening 312 and the outlet opening 313 opened in the downstream end wall (left end wall) to prevent leakage of microwaves to the outside. And.

  In the present embodiment, both the inlet opening 312 and the outlet opening 313 are set in a rectangular shape, and each trap zone 33 is set in a rectangular tube shape. The trap zone 33 is set to a length that prevents microwaves from leaking from the inside of the outer container body 31 ′ to the outside. In the trap zone 33, the upper surface of the bottom plate is set at the same level as the upper surface of the bottom plate of the inner container 20 '. An electromagnetic wave absorber for preventing leakage of microwaves is attached to the inner wall surface of the rectangular tube forming the trap zone 33.

  As in the first embodiment, the microwave oscillator 40 includes an oscillator main body 41 and a waveguide 42 installed between the oscillator main body 41 and the top plate of the outer container main body 31 ′. . Incidentally, in the second embodiment, since the outer container body 31 'is elongated in the left-right direction, the waveguide 42 is formed in a bifurcated shape so that the microwaves are evenly distributed in the outer container body 31'. The tip of one waveguide 42 is connected to the position of the left half of the top plate of the outer container body 31 ', and the tip of the other waveguide 42 is the right half of the top plate of the outer container body 31'. Connected to the position.

  The superheated steam generator 50 has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, and is interposed between a generator main body 51 that generates superheated steam, and the generator main body 51 and the inner container 20 '. And a steam supply pipe 52. The steam supply pipe 52 has a front end opening facing the inner container 20 ′ through the top plate of the outer container body 31 ′ and the top plate of the inner container 20 ′.

  The transport device 60 is disposed at a right outer position of the outer container body 31 ′, and a driving roller 61 having a roller core extending in the front-rear direction and a driving roller 61 facing the driving roller 61 at the left outer position. A driven roller 62 having a roller core extending in the front-rear direction, a conveying belt 63 comprising an endless belt wound around the driving roller 61 and the driven roller 62, and the driving roller 61 driven around the roller core. And a driving motor 64 that applies a driving force to rotate the motor. In the present embodiment, the drive shaft of the drive motor 64 is concentrically connected directly to the roller shaft of the drive roller 61.

  The driving roller 61 and the driven roller 62 are set at a height level such that the upper peripheral surfaces are positioned slightly above the upper surface of the bottom plate of the inner container 20 ′ and the upper surface of the bottom plate of the trap zone 33. On the other hand, the left and right end walls of the outer container body 31 ′ are slightly larger than the width of the conveyor belt 63 at a position slightly below the bottom plate of the trap zone 33, and the vertical width is slightly larger than the thickness of the conveyor belt 63. The belt passing window 34 is provided.

  The upper part of the conveyor belt 63 passes over the bottom plate of the left and right trap zones 33 and the bottom plate of the inner container 20 ′, and the lower part of the conveyor belt 63 passes through the left and right belt passing windows 34, 34. And is stretched between the driven rollers 62. In addition, a plurality of auxiliary rollers 65 are provided in the outer container body 31 ′ so that the peripheral surface is in contact with the lower surface of the upper one of the conveying belt 63. The auxiliary roller 65 prevents the conveyor belt 63 on which the article to be heated G is placed from bending downward.

  Then, by driving and rotating the driving roller 61 in the counterclockwise direction by driving the driving motor 64, the conveying belt 63 stretched between the driving roller 61 and the driven roller 62 circulates in the counterclockwise direction. .

  According to the heating device 10 ′ of the second embodiment, the oscillation device main body 41 and the generation device main body 51 are respectively driven, thereby irradiating microwaves into the outer container main body 31 ′ via the waveguide 42, and In the state where superheated steam is supplied into the inner container 20 ′ via the steam supply pipe 52, the drive motor 64 is driven so that the conveyor belt 63 faces the drive roller 61 and the driven roller 62 in the counterclockwise direction. Thus, the conveyor belt 63 runs vertically in the outer container body 31 'and the inner container 20' in the left-right direction.

  In this state, the object to be heated G is sequentially placed on the right end of the conveyor belt 63 that circulates around the object to be heated G, so that the object to be heated G passes through the upstream trap zone 33 and the inlet opening 312. In this case, a preliminary internal heating by microwaves is first performed. Subsequently, the object to be heated G is introduced into the inner container 20 ′ through the inlet opening 25, where external heating is performed by superheated steam from the generator main body 51, and the wall of the ceramic inner container 20 is applied. Internally heated by the transmitted microwave.

  That is, since internal heating and external heating are simultaneously performed on the object to be heated G in the inner container 20 ′, more efficient heat treatment can be realized as compared with the case where they are performed separately.

  Further, since the ceramic inner container 20 ′ itself is also heated by the microwave irradiation, the inner container 20 ′ is also heated to a higher temperature environment. Will be given.

  The heated object G discharged from the inner container 20 ′ through the outlet opening 26 is subjected to subsequent microwave heating in the outer container body 31 ′ until it reaches the outlet opening 313. Then, the object G to be heated is discharged to the outside of the outlet opening 313 and the downstream (left side) trap zone 33 by the rotation of the conveyor belt 63.

  Incidentally, in the case of the second embodiment, which is a continuous processing method, after satisfying the condition that the inner dimension between the opposing wall surfaces of the outer container 30 ′ must be set to at least twice the wavelength of the microwave, If the distance between the inner wall surface of 30 'and the edge in the width direction of the conveyor belt 63 is not more than 1.5 times the wavelength of the microwave, appropriate microwave heating cannot be performed on the object G to be heated. .

  Further, the distance between the upper surface of the moving object G to be moved and the inner surface of the top plate of the outer container 30 ′ needs to be 1.5 times the wavelength of the microwave (approximately 180 mm) or more. Therefore, for example, when the width dimension of the conveyance belt 63 is 600 mm, the inner width dimension of the outer container 30 ′ needs to be “600 mm + 180 mm + 180 mm = 960 mm” or more. If the vertical dimension of the article to be heated G is 100 mm, the vertical dimension of the outer container 30 ′ is “100 mm + 180 mm + 180 mm = 460 mm”.

  Therefore, in the case where the inner container 20 'is not used and the outer container 30' is irradiated with microwaves and the internal heating and the external heating combined system for supplying superheated steam are employed, the inside of the large capacity outer container 30 'is used. However, in the present invention, the superheated steam is supplied only to the inner container 20 ', so that a large energy loss is prevented. Appropriate external heating can be applied to the article to be heated G in the state.

  Further, when the inner container 20 'is not used, it is necessary to insulate the outer container 30', which increases the cost of the apparatus. In the present invention, the inner container 20 'is made of ceramics and has a heat insulating effect. In addition, since heat is generated by itself when irradiated with microwaves, it is not necessary to insulate the outer container 30 ′, which contributes to a reduction in apparatus cost.

  As described above in detail, the heating devices 10 and 10 ′ according to the present embodiment include the inner container 20 and 20 ′ that accommodates the object to be heated G and the inner container 20 to heat the object to be heated G. , 20 ′, superheated steam generator 50 for supplying superheated steam into the inner containers 20, 20 ′, and microwave oscillation for irradiating the outer containers 30, 30 ′ with microwaves And the inner container 20, 20 ′ is formed of a material through which the container body covering the inner heating space can transmit microwaves.

  According to the heating devices 10 and 10 ′ having such a configuration, the heated object G loaded in the inner containers 20 and 20 ′ includes superheated steam that is directly supplied to the inner containers 20 and 20 ′, and the outer containers 30 and 30. ′, And the heat treatment is performed by external heating and internal heating by both microwaves irradiated through the walls of the inner containers 20, 20 ′ and irradiated into the inner containers 20, 20 ′. The heated object G is heated from inside and outside, and as a result, the object to be heated G can be subjected to rapid and uniform heat treatment.

  Since the superheated steam is supplied to the inner containers 20 and 20 'having a smaller capacity than the outer containers 30 and 30', the inner containers 20 and 20 'are not employed and the large-capacity outer containers 30 and 30' are covered. Compared with the case where the heated object G is directly loaded, the object G can be subjected to the desired heat treatment with a small amount of superheated steam, which can contribute to a reduction in energy costs.

  In addition, the microwave has a property that it cannot be sufficiently diffused indoors unless the distance between the opposing wall surfaces in the room irradiated with the microwave is set to at least twice the wavelength of the microwave. For this reason, if microwaves are directly irradiated into the narrow inner containers 20 and 20 ', there is a possibility that a uniform heat treatment cannot be performed on the object G to be heated. In the heating apparatuses 10 and 10 ', since the microwaves are irradiated to the outer containers 30 and 30' that can be set to an appropriate large capacity, the inner containers 20 and 20 are caused by irregular reflection in the outer containers 30 and 30 '. It is possible to apply uniform internal heating by microwaves to the object G to be heated.

  That is, superheated steam is supplied into the small-capacity inner containers 20 and 20 'loaded with the object to be heated G, and microwaves are applied to the outer containers 30 and 30' in which the inner containers 20 and 20 'are accommodated. By irradiating, the heated object G can be more effectively subjected to heat treatment by effectively utilizing the characteristics of superheated steam and microwave.

  In the above embodiment, ceramics are used as a material that can transmit microwaves. Therefore, ceramics can transmit microwaves, and the ceramics themselves generate heat when irradiated with microwaves. Therefore, since the heat generated by the ceramic can also be used for the heat treatment of the object G to be heated, a more effective heat treatment for the object G to be heated is realized.

  And since the heating apparatus 10 which concerns on 1st Embodiment is a batch type thing, it can apply suitably, when the to-be-heated material G is a target of multi-item small-quantity production.

  On the other hand, the heating device 10 'of the second embodiment is a continuous type, and is provided with a transport device 60 that sequentially transports the article G to be heated in series. The transport device 60 includes an outer container 30' and contents. Since the container 20 'is arranged so as to penetrate both of the containers 20', the outer container 30 and the inner container 20 'are both submerged while sequentially conveying a large number of heated objects G in series by the conveying means. The heat treatment can be continuously performed on each object G to be heated.

  Such a heating apparatus 10 ′ can be suitably applied to the case where so-called mass production is performed, in which a large number of articles G to be heated are of the same type, and heat treatment is performed on them.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and includes the following contents.

  (1) In the first embodiment described above, the supply of superheated steam into the inner container 20 and the irradiation of microwaves into the outer container 30 are performed simultaneously, and the supply of these superheated steam and microwaves is performed. Although the stop is also performed at the same time, depending on the type of the object to be heated G, the purpose of the heat treatment, etc., the supply timing and the stop timing of the superheated steam and the microwave may be made different, either or both Measures such as intermittent supply may be taken.

  (2) In the first and second embodiments described above, a stirrer fan may be provided at an appropriate position in the outer container body 31, 31 '. By providing the stirrer fan, the microwaves irradiated in the outer container main bodies 31 and 31 'are reflected by the rotating stirrer fan and diffused uniformly in the outer container 30'.

  (3) In the second embodiment described above, the conveyor device 60 of the belt conveyor system is adopted as the transport means for feeding the article to be heated G into the inner container 20 ′ through the outer container 30 ′. The conveying means is not limited to the belt conveyor type, but may be a chain conveyor type, or the object to be heated G is placed on the self-propelled carriage into the heating apparatus 10 '. A self-propelled cart system may be used.

  (4) In the second embodiment, the driving force of the driving motor 64 is directly transmitted to the driving roller 61 without passing through the transmission. Instead, the driving motor 64 is driven. You may make it transmit force to the drive roller 61 via a transmission.

  (5) In the second embodiment described above, the outer container body 31 'is set to be long in the conveying direction of the object to be heated G, and a prior microwave is applied to the object to be heated G upstream of the inner container 20'. In addition to the heating, the object G to be heated is subjected to the subsequent microwave heating downstream of the inner container 20 ′. Instead, the outer container body 31 ′ is replaced with the inner container 20 ′. It may be set slightly longer than ′ so that substantially no pre-heating and post-heating are performed.

  In the above embodiment, the inner container 20 ′ is not provided with a steam vent pipe corresponding to the steam vent pipe 23 of the first embodiment, but the inner container 20 ′ may be provided with a steam vent pipe. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the superheated steam in the inner container 20 'from moving into the outer container 30' as much as possible.

  (6) FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a modified form of the heating device 10 ′ of the second embodiment, and FIG. 5A shows the upstream side (right side) of the inner container 20 ′ in the outer container 30 ′. 5B shows an example in which the inner container 20 'is arranged on the downstream side (left side) in the outer container 30', and FIG. 5C shows the inner container 20 '. 'Shows an example in which both are arranged on both the upstream side and the downstream side in the outer container 30'. Note that the direction display by X in FIG. 5 is the same as in FIG. 1 (−X: leftward, + X: rightward).

  The example in which the inner container 20 ′ is disposed at the center of the outer container 30 ′ is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, but the inner container 20 ′ is arranged according to the type of the object to be heated G and the heating purpose. The installation position is the upstream side (FIG. 5A), the downstream side (FIG. 5B), the central portion (FIGS. 3 and 4) in the outer container 30 ′, or Whether both the upstream side and the downstream side (FIG. 5C) are determined.

It is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a first embodiment of a heating device according to the present invention. It is the II-II sectional view taken on the line of the heating apparatus shown in FIG. It is a partially notched perspective view which shows 2nd Embodiment of the heating apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is the IV-IV sectional view taken on the line of the heating apparatus shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the deformation | transformation form of the heating apparatus of 2nd Embodiment, (A) is an example by which the inner container was arrange | positioned in the upstream in an outer container, (B) is an inner container in an outer container. Examples arranged on the downstream side, (C), show examples in which the inner container is arranged on both the upstream side and the downstream side in the outer container.

Explanation of symbols

10, 10 'heating device 20, 20' inner container (first heating container)
21 inner container body 211 front opening 22 inner container side door 23 steam venting pipe 24 base 241 leg 242 beam material 25 inlet opening 26 outlet opening 30, 30 'outer container (second heating container)
31, 31 'Outer container main body 311 Insertion / removal opening 312 Inlet opening 313 Outlet opening 32 Outer container side door 33 Trap zone 34 Belt through window 40 Microwave oscillator 41 Oscillator main body 42 Waveguide 50 Superheated steam generator 51 Generator Main body 52 Steam supply pipe 60 Conveying device 61 Driving roller 62 Followed roller 63 Conveying belt 64 Driving motor 65 Auxiliary roller G Object to be heated

Claims (5)

  While supplying superheated steam into the first heating container loaded with the object to be heated and irradiating the microwave into the second heating container containing the first heating container, external heating with the superheated steam, and The heating method characterized by performing a heat processing with respect to a to-be-heated object by combined use with the microwave heating by the microwave which permeate | transmitted the wall part of the 1st heating container.   It is a heating apparatus applied to the heating method of Claim 1, Comprising: The 1st heating container which accommodates the said to-be-heated material in order to heat-treat to a to-be-heated material, and the 2nd heating which accommodates this 1st heating container A container, a superheated steam generator for supplying superheated steam into the first heating container, and a microwave oscillating device for irradiating microwaves into the second heating container, A heating apparatus, wherein a container body covering the heating space is formed of a material that can transmit microwaves.   The heating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the material capable of transmitting the microwave is ceramics.   The conveyance means which conveys the said to-be-heated material sequentially in a serial state is provided, The said conveyance means is arrange | positioned so that both the said 1st and 2nd heating containers may be penetrated. Or the heating apparatus of 3. The heating apparatus according to claim 4, wherein an installation position of the first heating container in a transport direction of the transport unit is set according to a type of the object to be heated and a heating purpose.

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